Early Aretha Franklin gets us started. New music from Ethiopian songtress Aster Aweke keeps us going. And we wind down with 15 versions of "Giant Steps" featuring John Coltrane, Marian McPartland/Alice Coltrane, Fay Claassen, Jean-Michel Pilc, Cannonball, Leroy Jenkins, Henry Butler, Archie Shepp, Miami Saxophone Quartet, New York Voices, Michel Camilo, Pat Metheny Trio, Vanessa Rubin, Deepak Ram, and Rahsaan Roland Kirk.
We know Aretha, the rise and splendor of her voice, hushing angels, lifting us to heaven. Yes. But the Aretha most of us know and celebrate is the Aretha of the Atlantic years, the hits (too numerous to enumerate here), and her dominance of popular music, mostly in the seventies. But there is another Aretha, a surprisingly large body of work from the Columbia Records era that preceded her enthronement.
This is the early Aretha and there is, of course, a lot here to hear and love. And beyond the strong moments, this is really a story of frustration, a story of excellence gone awry, not because she could not sing—her ability was evident from the first recording—but what was not evident was how to frame the masterful voice, what setting within which to place this auditory excellence.
—kalamu ya salaam